Judiciary Committee endorses Hampden man’s nomination to be judge

AUGUSTA, Maine — The Legislature’s Judiciary Committee on Thursday unanimously endorsed the nomination of Gregory Campbell, 50, of Hampden to be a District Court judge.

The Senate is expected to hold a confirmation vote Friday.

Campbell, who has been an assistant district attorney in Penobscot and Piscataquis counties for more than two decades, was nominated by Gov. Paul LePage on May 22.

“It has been a whirlwind,” Campbell, a Republican, said of the past few weeks. “It’s very exciting and very flattering. I’m deeply appreciative of the honor to be nominated to be a District Court judge. It’s pretty humbling to hear people speak about you in that situation.”

People who spoke in favor of Campbell’s nomination before the Judiciary Committee included his boss, District Attorney R. Christopher Almy, a Democrat, and Bangor lawyers Marvin Glazier and Timothy Woodcock.

“It’s going to be a big loss for the DA’s Office but a big gain for the state,” Almy said last month when Campbell’s nomination was announced. “He knows the courtroom inside and out. He knows a valid objection from a frivolous one, and he knows a sincere explanation for illegal conduct from some bogus off-the-wall excuse.”

Campbell fielded questions Thursday about delivering justice more efficiently, dealing with litigants and defendants who act as their own attorneys, and whether evidence of his own political ideology would be identified in his courtroom.

“I don’t think we want judges who are activists or who take over the role of the Legislature,” he said. “Judges can have personal viewpoints about government but on the bench, everybody should be an independent.”

Judicial appointments are for seven years. A District Court judge’s salary is about $112,000 a year.

Campbell will fill a position left vacant by Roland Beaudoin, who retired earlier this month, according to Mary Ann Lynch, spokeswoman for the court system.

If confirmed by the Senate, Campbell would preside in Bangor.

A graduate of Brewer High School, Campbell graduated from Bates College in Lewiston and the University of Maine School of Law in Portland.

He went to work in 1985 as a prosecutor in Bangor. In the early 1990s, Campbell moved to the private sector for two years at Richardson, Troubh & Badge in Bangor, then served as a special assistant in the U.S Attorney’s Office.

He rejoined the Penobscot County District Attorney’s Office in 1995.

Campbell is married to lawyer Margaret Campbell. The couple have three children between the ages of 13 and 18.